a different kind of cultured

Teacher Tales

The lessons I learned in the country dirt are helping me shape the lives of those in the city.

“It is not enough for a rider to know how to ride; she must know how to fall.” – Mexican Proverb

As a horse-obsessed little girl, I didn’t think twice about getting back in the saddle. Falling is just a part of riding. If you don’t need to go to the hospital, you hop back on. It sends the wrong message to your horse, and most importantly to yourself, if you quit riding after you fall.

The first time I fell off a horse, my legs were wiped. After cantering around the ring countless times, I just got tired. I leaned in a bit too far on a turn and fell right off of the horse into the dirt.

I brushed the dirt off and hopped back on.

It’s one thing to lean over and fall into the dirt. It’s another to get bucked off. It’s another for your horse to jump right causing you to fly left. I remember riding a horse with a “bad attitude.” He refused a jump. Instead of lifting his legs to clear the poles, he sat on butt and slid into the jump. He scrambled backwards when the poles started to fall. He lost his footing and fell on me.

I brushed off the dirt and hopped back on.

We cleared the jump the next time around.

Looking back on this experience reminds me a lot of my time in the classroom. Some days I fail my students because I’m tired. I’m tired from grading, updating paperwork, planning, leading meetings and the list goes on. But some days I feel like I’ve been thrown in the dirt. I have left my classroom feeling that I have failed to help my most challenging students. They have resisted the hurdles I have asked them to clear. But just like a rider, I remember to brush myself off, change my approach, and guide my students to clear the hurdle that’s challenging them. I’m not going to quit when they want to quit.

And eventually they too will learn the gratification and success that comes from perseverance.